The government’s treaty with Mauritius to hand over sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), including the joint UK/US military facility on Diego Garcia, has caused anger and fierce debate since it was signed in May last year. In the latest setback, it appears to prevent the United States from handling or storing nuclear weapons at Naval Support Facility (NSF) Diego Garcia, unacceptably limiting its strategic use and autonomy.

Earlier this month, Sir Keir Starmer said, ‘I’ve been a lifelong advocate of international law and the importance of compliance with international law.’ It was, if anything, an understatement: last year his close friend, ally and choice for Attorney General, Lord Hermer, told the BBC that ‘actually by ensuring that we are complying with all forms of law – domestic law and international law – we serve the national interest’.

Have ministers and officials been incompetent or duplicitous?

It is this attitude that has driven the government’s negotiations with Mauritius over the future of the BIOT – also known as the Chagos islands – and its approach to the terms of the eventual treaty. The advisory, non-binding opinion of the International Court of Justice given in 2019 that ‘the United Kingdom is under an obligation to bring to an end its administration........

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